


tomorrow this will be nothing (but tonight it is everything)

by writeblrdotcom



Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: First Kiss, Fluff, He's a bit of a disaster, M/M, No beta we die like archival assistants, i'm sorry this is so rushed i wrote the vast majority of it in the past hour, it takes place during season one and you cant tell me it's not canon, it's kinda soft. maybe a little bit., jon doesn't know how to handle feelings, right i cant tag for shit, uh? they go on a date but not exactly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-03
Updated: 2020-07-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:49:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25032727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/writeblrdotcom/pseuds/writeblrdotcom
Summary: Jon takes a deep breath. “I know I’ve been a bit rough on you. I’d like to, ah.” He exhales. “Make it up to you? We could go out for drinks, if you wanted.”
Relationships: Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist
Comments: 4
Kudos: 131





	tomorrow this will be nothing (but tonight it is everything)

**Author's Note:**

> this is a birthday present for my wonderful s/o! happy birthday dumbass, ily
> 
> the title was taken from 'always sunny in south london' by bears in trees!

It’s not that Jon dislikes Martin. He rather appreciates him, really!

Well. He appreciates Martin as a person. As an assistant, he could honestly be better. Jon’s not sure how him trying to express this always ends up translating to  _ “I hate Martin K. Blackwood with my entire heart and soul, thank you for coming to my TED Talk.”  _ Martin isn’t the best at his job, but he’s nice and caring and considerate. Jon can appreciate that.

It takes him months before it finally dawns on him that he’s not exactly been the nicest to Martin. He hadn’t meant to be  _ nice, _ but he’s been a bit harsh at times. He decides to apologise, but simply saying “sorry” wouldn’t quite be enough, so Jon thinks on it. He thinks. He thinks. He records statements. He thinks some more.

“Martin?” He finally asks one day when they’re the only two left. Martin startles and spins around.

“Ah! Er, hello,” He says, straightening himself up. “What—”

Jon takes a deep breath. “I know I’ve been a bit rough on you. I’d like to, ah.” He exhales. “Make it up to you? We could go out for drinks, if you wanted.”

Martin seems a bit flustered at this, and he stammers before getting out a complete sentence. “I don’t- I don’t really drink,” He admits, his gaze focusing on everything but Jon.

The archivist almost laughs. “Right.” He should know this. “Well, what about coffee or something instead? I know you prefer tea but there aren’t many good tea places, to be honest, and—”

Martin cuts him off. “I’d love to, Jon.”

“Oh. Right then.” Jon rubs the back of his neck. “Ah, what about Saturday at… noon or so?”

Martin nods. Jon nods back. They both stand there, a bit awkwardly.

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow, I suppose.” Jon turns and leaves.

“Right.”

Saturday arrives. Jon is not ready.

He shouldn’t be stressing so much. It’s just a little outing, friends do those all the time. It’s nothing special, right?

It shouldn’t be. So why’s he spending so much time trying to make himself look decent?

He normally doesn’t care too much about his appearance. But here he is, standing in front of his bathroom mirror, making sure to double check every little detail.  _ It’s just Martin, _ he tells himself.  _ He won’t judge you. He doesn’t care. _

Jon really wishes he could listen to himself better.

Noon arrives, and Jon is waiting outside the shop. Martin comes running up to him a few minutes later. He begins to form an apology but Jon quiets him and leads him inside.

They both order, neither of their drinks are anything too special, and wait near the door for them to be ready.

“So,” Martin begins, looking unsure. “What exactly  _ is _ this?”

“This?”

“What are we doing, what’s the purpose of going out?”

Jon pauses. “I’m not sure.”

“It’s nice.”

Their names are called and they walk up to the counter for their drinks. Jon decides to go outside and sit on a bench nearby, and Martin follows him.

A strange feeling settles over him when Martin sits beside him. Jon’s not unused to strange feelings, but this one is… different. Not exactly bad. Something about Martin’s presence comforts him in a way, but also makes him incredibly anxious and he’s not sure why.

They’re talking, occasionally sipping their drinks, acting like normal adults on a Saturday afternoon. It’s as if they’re friends. Maybe they are now. And then at one point, Jon says something or another and Martin laughs and  _ oh. _

That’s why Jon’s so nervous around him.

He’s not sure what to do.

He’s hardly caught feelings for anyone since Georgie, and that was years ago. Romance has never been his thing, and he’s always been okay with that. He’s been good at staying away from it. But now, well.

Fuck.

After they’ve finished, they’re on a walk, destination unknown. The sidewalk is small but they still walk beside each other. At one point, their hands brush together, and Jon can feel both of them tense up slightly. Neither of them move away, though.

It begins drizzling soon, so they both take cover under a large tree that doesn’t  _ quite _ shelter them fully, but maybe sheltering them isn’t the purpose of it. Maybe it’s an excuse to be closer together. They sit on the grass, heads leaning against the bark.

“Did you have a good time?” Jon asks quietly.

Martin blinks for a second, not expecting a question. “Oh! Yes, I did. Thank you.”

“Right.” Jon clears his throat. “So, tell me a bit about yourself. If you’d like.” If he’s going to be dumb and catch feelings, he might as well know a bit more about the object of his affection.

“Um. Well, I live on my own. I don’t leave often except for work, really. I don’t have a very interesting life,” He says, chuckling at the end. “I had a boyfriend in university. He’s… the last  _ friend _ I had before I came to work at the Institute.”

“Oh.”

“Oh.”

Well. He’s at least not straight. Not that Jon would ever have a chance with him, and besides, it’s only a little crush. That’s all. But really, now that he thinks about it, this isn’t quite new.

Martin is saying something. “I’m really glad you did this, actually. I’ve always felt a bit drawn to you, uh, i-if that makes sense.”

Jon breathes out a tiny laugh. “I suppose you could say that I’m rather drawn to you as well.”

“Oh?”

“Yes.”

Their hands are close. Very close. Jon decides  _ screw it _ and puts his own hand over Martin’s. His coworker’s face flushes.

After a moment of quiet, Jon speaks. “Martin. Am I reading this right, or?”

He turns his head to look. “Are you?”

“Well, I’m not sure, but—”

Martin shuts him up with a kiss.

Oh.

After pulling away, Martin begins an apology. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think, I shouldn’t have done that—”

“Martin.”

“I- yes?”

This time it’s Jon who initiates the kiss. It lasts longer this time, but not too long. They both pull away at the same time, and they both start grinning, and they both turn back to the rain.

Monday comes. Jon comes out of his office more often, mainly to see Martin. Martin starts talking to him more. It’s obvious that something’s changed, Tim and Sasha definitely notice, but they surprisingly don’t say much about it.

Martin and Jon don’t make anything official. They don’t establish anything. They’re just friends who sometimes sneak kisses in dark rooms, who sometimes hold hands if they’re both going to the same place, who sometimes perform small gestures that mean “I love you” only to them.

They don’t have to figure anything out yet. They’re perfectly fine with how they are.

**Author's Note:**

> follow my tumblr @writeblrdotcom !!


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